Changing Our Venue: Parts 2 and 3

I realize that all these posts about choosing and changing a venue are getting kind of lengthy. Sorry! So since you know that I obviously did end up with a venue (yay!), I'm going to end this saga right here, right now!

Early in my searches, one of the first places I considered was Danversport Yacht Club. However, their main ballroom was booked for all of the summer months of 2012, and the minimum was more than I wanted to spend. At this point, I decided to re-visit DYC because they do have another ballroom that I had not previously considered.

Image courtesy of Danversport.com

Image courtesy of danversport.com

The photos really don't do it justice...the property is gorgeous and well-kept. After a site visit with my MOH in tow, we decided that this location had more of what I was looking for, and the minimum was right where I needed it to be! The catch was ... they didn't have June 16. The next available Saturday that they had was July 14. After a quick call to our church, confirming they had 7/14 open, we decided to change it. I still needed Keith to come and look at it for his final approval, but with my upcoming weekend trip, we wouldn't be able to go back until Tuesday to put the deposit down. The wedding coordinator told me that they couldn't hold the date (some weird policy) but assured me four days wouldn't be a problem, and that they didn't expect/anticipate someone else to booking that room in that time frame. So I left .... a little wary, but excited. 

Sigh. Well, it turns out that I should have either a) demanded they hold it or b) put down the deposit without Keith seeing it. He had been there before. He knew what it looked liked. He was happy, if I was happy. But I really wanted to him to see it. So I walked away. And as it turns out, lost the venue. Yep, someone came in on Saturday and put down a deposit. 

It was not a pretty moment when I found this out. There were lots of tears and maybe even some yelling on my part. The poor woman who had to give me the bad news felt so awful for me, but the best she could offer me was August 4. I refused. I was not going to be an August bride. June 16 or July 14 were the only two dates I would consider. So back to the drawing board I went. 

Two hours later, I was in my car (again with my amazing MOH in tow) going to look at the Salem Waterfront Hotel. This was a venue that I had known of, but never really considered because it's a bit farther from my church than I would have liked. But at this point, I had to consider everything. As soon as I walked in, I fell in love. This was my place. I loved the ballroom. I loved the room where the cocktail hour would be held. And it was right on the wharf. My pictures would be beautiful. Oh, I guess you probably want to see some of those, right?

The hotel from the wharf, Image courtesy of mywedding.com

The gorgeous lobby, Image courtesy salemwaterfront.com

Image via theknot.com
Yes sometimes there is an old schooner docked at the marina!

The best part? They had July 14 available! Done and done. I put a hold on the hotel, and a few days later Keith and I went back to look at it, and paid the deposit. 

Finally after over a month of venue-craziness,our search was over. We really had the right place this time! I felt bad for putting our families through the madness of finding a venue, but in the end it was worth it. I have no regrets about the place we chose and I know that it will be truly amazing.

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